To Gain a Curse is to Lose Naivety
by AliceTheBookGirl
Summary: You live your life thinking you know everything that goes on around you. The old perverted man's one-track mind only thinks of groping innocent young women. The chef who can live all alone thinks she's the best choice for a wife. A curse can't be all that hard to live with if it's lasted for nearly two years. Oh, how the universe just loves to prove dear Akane wrong.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: The characters and original plot of Ranma ½ do not belong to me. **

Also, this is my first story ever posted, so please don't break my amateur spirit with your criticism. However, they will be gratefully accepted either way.

Chapter 1: To Gain a Father Who Thought Things Through is to Lose All Hope for a Cure

"So Daddy, what did you want to talk about?"

It was nearing the end of March, marking the beginning of spring. This meant the school year had ended and with it, another chapter of many students' lives. Not to mention a certain wedding ceremony failed to follow through the week previous, effectively delaying a big change that should have taken place.

Akane Tendo was merely sixteen years old, and felt conflicting emotions of disappointment and relief when it was clear she wouldn't be getting married just yet. She wasn't even a legal adult, so no one could expect her to know if marriage was the right decision to make at such a young age. And for what purpose? To provide a cure to a Jusenkyo curse for a groom who denied loving the bride?

Yes, it was right to feel satisfied that the wedding didn't go through. The tears she shed in her sleep that night were ones of relief and feeling of release from a burden she was not yet ready to accept, not because of despair and devastation at the state of her once beautiful white wedding gown, nor the empty feeling of "being left at the altar," as the Westerners called it.

Mentally nodding to herself, Akane accepted this explanation and put the rest out of her mind as she was curious to know what her father wanted at this time of day. Usually Soun Tendo would be sitting out on the engawa playing—or rather cheating at— a game of _Go_ with his long-time friend, Genma Saotome, also the father of the aforementioned groom.

This particular day however, Soun had simply been gazing across the yard, deep in thought. It had rained in the late afternoon, and this brought to his attention of the shimmering ripples on the surface of the pond. Water. It was a life essential. Without it humans, animals, plants; no life at all would exist. And yet, it could very well end all of that life, leaving no trace behind. People tend to forget about this and take the life-sustaining liquid for granted. Soun was no less guilty of this. That is, until the day he met a red-haired girl and her panda.

From that day onward, he began to recognize the role water played in his life. No longer was it merely for drinking and cleansing himself with, but it became both a curse and a cure for his friend and future son-in-law. This then brought to the front of his mind of the bribe he used to get his daughter to willingly participate in the joining of the schools. It was obvious of the feelings the two teenagers had for one another. Soun merely wanted one of them to make the first move, and used the water from the Cursed Spring of Drowned Man, Nannichuan, as the perfect opportunity. He hadn't meant for everything to fall into such a disaster. He couldn't force one of his cherished daughters into a marriage she wasn't prepared for. Unfortunately, he underestimated Akane's ability to take everything in the literal sense, especially when he specifically told her, "Only with your joining in matrimony will Ranma get his hands on this water. And you know how desperately he's been trying to get a cure." Oh, what a fool he had been to think anything would have gone correctly.

The good news had yet to come, though. For once Soun thought a few things through and made the wise decision to replace the Nannichuan water with regular water. He kept the cursed water in a water barrel in the corner of his closet. It was the last place anyone would look for something precious, and it had the added bonus of keeping Happosai away because of all the men's clothing. Everyone was left to think the last of the Nannichuan disappeared with the old man, and Soun allowed that to go on until that afternoon when he contemplated the waters of the pond. As he and his daughter met in his room, he mentally went about how to approach the subject.

"Well Akane, it has come to my attention that nothing seems to get better around Nerima. It either stays the same or gets worse."

Akane was confused, not by her father's statement, but rather by the fact it came from him. Never before did she expect him to be introspective about her life, or anyone else's for that matter. Not since the day her mother passed on. Akane decided to play oblivious to hear more. "What do you mean, Daddy? What's happened that made you feel this way? Nerima isn't a bad place to be at all."

Soun sighed. For the first time, Akane was able to spot gray hidden under his black hair. "Akane, you must notice by now how every day ever since Genma and Ranma arrived has only brought more complications to our lives. I'm not complaining however, because a true martial artist must always be prepared to face the worst. No, what I'm getting at is a way to solve at least one of those problems."

Perking up at this, Akane questioned, "A solution to one of our problems? And exactly what problem are we talking about?" A thought occurred to her and she narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "You aren't suggesting another shotgun wedding to 'solve' the fiancée and suitor problem, are you? Well I'm not going through with it this time! You can't make me, and there's definitely no way to bribe me when the last of Ranma's cure has already disappeared!"

"And that's where you're wrong, Akane. Ranma still has a chance for a cure."

Akane was overwhelmed by the shock that hit her. Another chance at Ranma's cure? She could feel the tears build up in her eyes. Though she still couldn't understand why, Akane knew without a doubt if her father once again bribed her, she would unhesitatingly accept it. She was helpless when matters concerned Ranma. Sure, her façade brought about the pretense that she could care less for her fiancé's well-being, especially when she beat on him for getting into compromising situations. But deep down she only wanted him to be satisfied with his life, even if it included her. If there was no way out of marrying a tomboy like her, the least she could do was make some part of his life better.

Raising her head to meet her father's eyes, Akane asked softly, "So that's it. We're having another wedding. Should I warn Ranma this time, or will everything happen as fast as last time that it won't even matter?"

"Er, not exactly." Soun shifted uncomfortably under his daughter's tearful gaze. "I've seen how wrong things went last week. Impulsive plans such as a shotgun wedding wasn't going to solve anything. Instead it would have created more problems, whether or not our uninvited guests showed up."

Akane's eyes widened. "What are you saying?" she asked, however a miniscule ray of hope gave way to an idea of what was coming next.

"I'm saying Ranma should finally be given a break. His curse has been something everyone eventually became accustomed to, but I'm sure he still despises the form he takes with cold water. Although the wedding disaster opened my eyes to how little the two of you have progressed in your relationship, I still haven't given up hope in joining the schools. And so I want you to be the one to present Ranma with his cure, and maybe this will rid one of the obstacles preventing you from getting along."

Watching Soun stand up and walk to his closet, Akane was given a small amount of time to process everything that was just said. It was simply too easy! She couldn't possibly expect her father to just give Ranma the cure and not have a catch. But then again, maybe her father was being sincere and only wanted to make things easier for Ranma.

As Soun made his way back to Akane with the water barrel in his arms, she made the quick resolve that this last actual batch of Jusenkyo water would not go to waste. Accepting the barrel into her own outstretched arms, she asked, "By the way, how did you manage to get two barrels of this water? I thought the guide said there was only enough to fill one."

Soun chuckled nervously and replied, "I couldn't risk having the actual water out during the wedding. It was safer to keep it all in my room until the ceremony was over."

A sudden realization came to Akane's mind. "What?! So you made every Jusenkyo-cursed person in Nerima think Happosai drank the only cure they had for a whole week now?!"

And speak of the devil, the shriveled old man came bounding through the open window of the room carrying a giant sack of panties five times his size on his back. The first person he saw was Akane and he gleefully hopped towards her yelling, "Akane-chan! Let me have a little rest in your precious bosom after all my hard work today!"

Both Soun and Akane were too slow to prevent what happened next. As Happosai landed on the water barrel Akane held, his momentum caused the girl to fall backwards slightly. The old man stumbled forward because of this, taking the barrel lid with him.

As Akane helplessly watched the water cascade over her, she thought, _I should have known. Even if Daddy didn't propose a deal for the water, fate would have come up with something._


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: The characters and original plot of Ranma ½ do not belong to me. **

Thanks everyone, for sticking around to read the next installment of (insert the long title here). I hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 2: To Gain a Son is to Lose a Daughter**

"Ack! A man's chest! Get away from me! Get away!" Happosai screeched. Due to absorbing ki from a man thinking it was female ki, he withered and fell to the floor, effectively spilling the rest of the Nannichuan water.

Soun could only stare in horror at his child sprawled on the floor. The feet were wide and calloused, not small and feminine like a young woman should have no matter how intensely she trained in martial arts. The legs were longer and sturdier, covered with sweatpants that seemed smaller than before. Quickly moving his gaze upward, Soun stared at the flat chest stretching the red t-shirt that concealed it, but there was no doubt it was a man's chest. Afraid to see the look on Akane's face, Soun softly closed his eyes and took a deep breath. After a moment he lifted his head and opened them, meeting his daughter-turned-son's gaze.

The eyes were the same, he noted, albeit a bit darker than before. What was once a light chocolate-brown color had become a darker shade that made it difficult to read the emotions going through his youngest child's mind.

Akane pushed her wet bangs from her face, realizing her hair was now jet black instead of the deep midnight blue she was used to seeing. That hair seemed to be a checkpoint in all the major turns of her life. She began to grow it long when she first discovered what it meant to have feelings for a man. When it was abruptly cut short again, she realized it was a simple crush compared to how she began to feel for a certain pig-tailed boy. And now the color indicated she was more or less permanently stuck with a curse she never anticipated she'd fall victim to.

Frankly, she wasn't surprised with the turn of events. It was partially why Soun couldn't find that hint of anger, shame, or even sadness he was sure would spill from Akane in waves.

"A-akane dear, are you alright?" he tentatively asked.

Akane awkwardly stood up, testing out her new legs. She felt a surge of power as she did so, the strength in her muscles making her feel renewed strength. She brought her hands to her chest to assure herself that certain assets really were gone. Akane wasn't exactly disappointed however, since she instead felt firm pectorals that were awkward under her bra. Moving slowly downwards, she lightly touched the rock hard abs that didn't feel all too different from Ranma's in those rare times when he carried her in his arms.

A soft blush spreading across her face, Akane dropped her hands and looked back up at her father. She wasn't anywhere near ready to explore her body further, and would prefer to discuss her predicament for the time being.

Soun had observed Akane getting to know her new body, and it touched something deep inside him. It was watching a newborn seeing the world for the first time. Soun couldn't help it. The tears came as easily as it always did, but this time the wailing was absent.

Whenever Soun started on his daily waterworks, his loud cries never failed to put a comedic air to it. However, it was only a façade. No one ever questioned if his pain was real and his daughters were no different. He was always easy to hurt, even before his beloved wife passed on. Those days he never cried out loud because he knew his pain would hurt her as well. But it hadn't mattered because his dear Kimiko knew anyway. When she left the living world, the need to hide his pain went with her. From that day onward, the people around him just went with the explanation that his wife's death was the sole reason he was so emotionally fragile, without ever delving further into the matter.

As time went on, Soun realized his daughters were moving on without him. Kasumi took control of the household chores, Nabiki found her way with money, and Akane continued training herself in martial arts. It was then he knew the time had come to hide his pain once again and continue his life, and that's when the flooding tears and woeful wails became a common occurrence.

But now, he truly knew an unfixable mistake had been made with his own actions as the root cause. He had meddled far too many times in his youngest daughter's choices. He refused to teach her to fight any longer, so she became far too lax in her skills. He engaged her to a boy neither of them knew without her consent, so she seemingly lost the chance to be his friend at the very least. For nearly a year now he had allowed a different boy disguised as a pig to share her bed for Kami's sake! And now with a chain of bad decisions, his daughter became his son.

For once Soun knew exactly what Ranma felt when Akane would inevitably become raging mad and declare him her most recent subject of hatred. Before he could hear what Akane had to say however, another voice spoke up.

"Don't tell me a one-of-a-kind beauty like Akane-chan has just been turned into this abominating species of humankind?! A man?!" It would be a wasted effort on both Soun and Akane's part to mention that Happosai himself was a man.

Akane finally found that familiar feeling creeping up past the recesses of her mind. Not having an extreme reaction was far too odd, so it wasn't hard to accept the anger. It looked to blame someone for all the misfortunes that befell her that day, and Happosai was a legitimate target. Forming a fist with her male hands, Akane stomped toward the old man to give him a beating like she never gave before.

Before her right hand could impact his head though, it was halted by Happosai's smoking pipe. Akane then felt a weird sensation that lasted less than half a second before she slammed against the opposite wall. She realized she had been thrown by the old creep.

"Akane!" And there was the typical wail she was waiting for. With exception to her newly acquired curse, it seemed things were finally returning back to normal.

Akane landed on her knees and lifted her head to glare at Happosai. "What's your problem?" came the deep alien voice from her mouth. "It's all your fault the water spilled on me!"

Happosai crossed his arms and closed his eyes, trying to give the pretense that he was about to say something wise. It didn't work. "If you're dead set on giving me that attitude, then I guess I can just waltz out of this room right now and announce to all of Nerima about your new gift from Jusenkyo," he replied in a haughty voice.

Not as wise as it was sneaky. Soun's face showed panic while Akane's eyes widened. Now that she was given a few minutes to really think of what it meant to be cursed, she had to consider how others would react to it. There wasn't a doubt the students and teachers at school would be gossiping about it for weeks. Shampoo and Ukyo (maybe even Kodachi if she stopped being so delusional for a few seconds) would laugh at her and use the curse as another reason why she wasn't fit to be anyone's wife. And Ranma, oh Ranma, he'd scoff and agree with them.

"_Not surprising the tomboy became a _real_ boy!" _he'd say. _"And to spill the cure to my curse on yourself just proves how clumsy you are. I wouldn't live long enough to last through a wedding ceremony with you, tripping all over the place!"_

"Don't you dare tell anyone!" Akane all but shouted.

"Oh? And what would I get in return for keeping such a big secret?"

"Anything that isn't perverted."

Happosai tapped a finger to his chin, deep in thought. The room was silent for a few minutes before Akane lost her patience.

"Well?!"

"I want to train you."

The other two gaped in shock. Happosai wanted to train a new student that was a female no less? Surely the universe wasn't content with just cursing Akane that day. It had to throw a few more surprises in for good measure.

Akane almost agreed when she remembered why training with Happosai would be worse than spending a lifetime with the devil. Images of running from angered restaurant owners, stealing panties and sake from unsuspecting women and their husbands, and starving every other day because her teacher was too much of a bum to find his own food ran through her mind in a flash.

Unconsciously shuddering, Akane replied stubbornly, "I don't need any training. I can handle myself just fine."

"Really now? Then how do you explain how I got this and you never even noticed?" Happosai taunted, holding up a very familiar looking bra with his pipe.

"What the!" Akane's hands flew to her chest and she realized that her bra was indeed gone. Snapping flaming eyes back at the old man, Akane leapt at him and demanded to have the piece of underclothing back.

Happosai merely bounced off the walls avoiding her hands by centimeters and gleefully sang, "You want it, come and get it! You claim you can fend for yourself then prove it to me!"

Akane's useless attempts to get her bra back continued while Soun was conflicted with how to deal with the situation. He pathetically raised his arms in calming gestures and gave weak protests about the other two messing up his room. His failure eventually brought tears to his eyes and he was reduced to sobbing.

Akane was soon worn out and slowed to a stop next to the bed. Her anger was not appeased however, and she refused to give in to Happosai's request to train her. Strengthening her resolve, she declared to the both of them, "I've had a rough day. Once I get take a warm bath to change myself back and eat a hot meal made by Kasumi, I'll have enough strength to get my bra back. Just you watch!" And she stomped out the door.

Soun and Happosai stared out the open doorway in awe at Akane's audacity.

"Soun, your daughter can be a little impulsive sometimes."

"Oh, Master! It's all my fault she's like that!"

Meanwhile, Akane had gathered fresh clothing from her room and was heading for the bath, where an unsuspecting Nabiki had just stepped into the steaming waters of the furo.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: The characters and original plot of Ranma ½ do not belong to me.**

I'm sure everyone realized this chapter took longer than the first two. Let's just say taking Japanese as your language class requires you to practice _several_ pages of Kanji. But I have prevailed and found the time to pour out the next chapter from my mind.

Also, some people have reviewed as guests and since I can't reply to them, I just want to thank them here. So, thanks for all your support!

**Chapter 3: To Gain an Alias is to Lose a Few Hairs**

Nabiki had another satisfying day collecting debts. Ukyo was a few thousand yen short because of her overwhelming curiosity as to why Ranma was more reserved around her recently. Kuno paid for pictures of his obsessions and information about Ranma. She ran into Ryoga early in the morning and sold him a map that was more or less up to date (more likely less). A few classmates came by her usual selling spot in the park reserved specifically for when school was out and bought videos of the unsuccessful wedding.

A whole week had already passed since that day and Nabiki hadn't anticipated that people would still be talking about it. After all, more exciting things happen in Nerima all the time. However, each day had come and gone by without any change in the usual routine. Nabiki needed something big to happen soon before her current supply ran out.

She continually contemplated ideas throughout the day and before she realized how much time had passed, it was already time for her evening bath. As she lowered herself into the furo, she became desperate enough to play around with the idea of setting random people up in compromising situations.

_I just have to find the perfect victims,_ she thought absently, slowly relaxing in the warm water. So content and tranquil was she that the sounds from the changing room didn't reach her ears until the door slid open.

Opening her eyes, Nabiki found herself face to face with an extremely handsome boy, although his hairstyle didn't seem to fit quite right. That thought vanished quickly when she noted that the boy was naked, save for the measly towel that covered his nether regions, and he did so almost ashamedly. His face showed only terror though.

Nabiki wasn't exactly scared of being in the current situation, especially since she knew all of the household members were close by. All she needed to do was scream and they would all come running. This gave her the courage to hide her surprise and ask the stranger, "And who might you be?"

Eyes wide and body shaking, he stuttered, "I-I-I'm A-A…um."

"His name is Aoi."

Both Nabiki and the boy turned their attention to Happosai, who was standing to the side of the washroom. Nabiki hadn't even noticed him enter. The window was closed and the only other entrance was blocked by the boy. Shaking her head, she knew it was useless to try and figure out how all of these martial artists managed to do their tricks. Despite coming from a family of them, she never had the interest to learn and it would only give her a headache.

"How, exactly, do you know him? Don't tell me he's another guy pissed off by something you did to him."

Happosai scoffed and said, "I did nothing to him that would deter him from manliness, if that's what you're implying."

Aoi's eye twitched in annoyance. This gave Nabiki the feeling Happosai wasn't telling her the full truth. However, she was slowly becoming uncomfortable sitting in the bath with two men just standing there. She decided to accept his reply for the time being.

"Now, if the two of you wouldn't mind, GET OUT!" She threw back-scrubbers and buckets at the two of them until they fled into the changing room, though Happosai managed a quick feel that caused her to scream in outrage.

Once Nabiki was along again, she allowed herself to calm down and took a few deeps breaths. People rarely witnessed the times she lost her cool. Those unfortunate people were later caught in mysterious accidents and though they told no one, they knew it was Nabiki's own way of warning them. Her only exceptions were her sisters. No one could ever treat Kasumi wrongly without feeling like the lowest scum of the world, and to seek revenge on Akane just wouldn't be any fun because she was a little dense on matters concerning people's demons. Though Akane occasionally brought her wrath upon the few people who really annoyed her, she always found the goodness in their hearts, even for someone like Nabiki. No, she would get no satisfaction in subtle retribution against Akane, so she settled for charging unnecessary extra fees.

Happosai and the new boy wouldn't get it that easy. Nabiki had several ideas for the old man already running through her head. As for Aoi, she assumed it would be easy to play on his apparent nervousness around girls. The guy was almost as bad as Ranma.

Though no one was there to see it, Nabiki's smile could have caused screams of silent terror throughout the district of Nerima.

. . . . .

While Nabiki was busy plotting for revenge, her two victims quickly escaped the entire bathing area altogether, though "Aoi" managed to put "his" clothes back on first.

The two at first headed for Akane's room, but once they reached the top of the stairs Happosai spotted a familiar red Chinese shirt. He automatically grabbed Akane by the collar of her shirt and turned back around. After a mad dash down the hallway, a leap down the stairs, and something short of teleporting past the kitchen doorway, he burst back into Soun's room, dragging Akane behind him.

"Ack! Let go of me you crazy pervert!" Akane shouted, thrashing around in a panic.

"Calm down boy, before the whole family bursts in and I won't be able to keep your secret as easily as with your sister," Happosai commanded from his perch on Soun's bed. Soun himself was rifling through his closet for something more suitable for his "son" to wear.

When Happosai called her "boy," it struck something in Akane. She wasn't a girl anymore. At least, temporarily she wasn't. Instead she was an honest to goodness _male._ The one thing she hated most nearly a year ago, before Ranma and his panda father showed up.

Akane went limp and she quieted down.

Happosai nodded his head in approval. "Good. Now let me explain the game plan here. I have a great-grandson that I only recently met. For ten years he has been searching for me in order to learn Anything Goes Martial Arts and become a legitimate candidate as the heir to the school. You, Aoi, will begin training under me to see if you have what it takes to qualify. In order not to raise suspicions, you'll be 'staying' in a temporary home away from the dojo so Akane can freely come and go as she likes."

The only sound in the room as Akane contemplated this idea was of Soun rustling in his closet still. She glared at a spot on the floor as she realized Happosai's proposal made sense, and it wasn't too outrageous to believe. But who would be crazy enough to follow through with one of his plans?

As Akane debated in her head the brightness of listening to the old pervert, Soun finally found what he was looking for. He pulled away from the closet holding an old t-shirt that was a few sizes too small for him to wear, but he figured it would fit his daughter-turned-son much better. Unfortunately, he couldn't find a better pair of pants than the ones she was currently wearing.

He walked over and knelt by the fuming Akane. He offered the shirt to her and she hesitantly accepted it without a word.

This became one of times when Soun knew he needed to act like a parent. But it was just so hard to suddenly break out of his shelter of obliviousness. No matter how strongly he wanted to be the support one of his daughters needed, he simply couldn't reach out to them. The same thing happened here, as he lifted his hand to put a comforting arm around Akane's shoulders but pulled away at the last second. After all, what right did he have to console her when it was his fault she was in this predicament?

As for Akane, she was completely unaware of her father's internal struggle, so she continued to consider Happosai's idea. She walked to a corner of the room and turned around to change shirts as she finally began to speak.

"Your story could work. But just understand one thing," she turned back around to face Happosai before continuing, "There's no way I'm going to train under your instruction. I don't need your help because I can handle a fight myself, and I'd probably end up in prison or dead if I did anything you taught me."

Smiling mysteriously, Happosai only responded with, "That's what you think right now."

Then his entire mood changed and suddenly a pair of scissors appeared in his hands. With a slightly serious face, he said, "Before we introduce my dear relative to everyone, I'd say he needs to fix his appearance up a bit more!"

He leapt onto Akane's head and snipped away for a few seconds, then hopping to the ground before Akane could react violently and ruin her haircut.

"What did you do?!"

Running to the mirror hanging on the wall, Akane studied her face as a male for the first time. Her hair on the back of her head was shorter and her bangs fell flatter on her forehead, but it was all cut in a way to give her a messy look. It allowed her to hide her eyes more easily as well, so after pushing her bangs out of the way, Akane could take a full look at her face. It was familiar, and yet it was foreign.

If she met a boy that looked just like the one in the mirror, Akane just might call him cute. However she _was_ that boy and saying that about herself would only make her sound like Ranma.

_Ranma…_

Thinking about the pig-tailed boy had Akane realize something quite obvious. Ranma must go through the exact same thoughts every single time he looks at his reflection as a girl. He controls that body, and yet it doesn't really belong to him.

Akane's eyes lit up as she thought,_ Maybe he won't think I'm a freak. He'll know exactly how it feels to live through a curse that changes your gender. But then again…it's different for a girl to change into a guy than it is for a guy to change into a girl…will he really understand?_

Before she could think on it further, the three occupants of the room heard a call from downstairs.

"Everyone, it's almost time for dinner! Please wash up!" Kasumi's sweet voice rang.

Happosai perked up at the mention of a meal. He tossed Akane a pair of black pants and rushed out of the room saying, "Here! Ranma lent those to me for the moment so change into those and meet us downstairs, boy!"

The pants landed in Akane's arms and she looked to her father, silently begging for him to have a better plan than that of the Grandmaster's. Soun could only shake his head in regret and slowly left to join the others at the dinner table.

This left Akane to sigh in an empty room. A few seconds later and she steeled her resolve. When she finally made her appearance to the rest of the family, there would be no going back.

Glancing once more at the pants she held in her arms, Akane muttered, "Stole them is more like it."


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: The characters and original plot of Ranma ½ do not belong to me.**

My sister reminded me that the number 4 in Japan is unlucky. Maybe that's why it took so long to finish this chapter. Anyway, this chapter marks the beginning of using clearer pronouns. Akane will be "he" as a boy and "she" as a girl. Same goes for other gender-bending people.

On a side note (though it might help make some sense), in Japanese "Aoi" means "blue" while "Momoi" means "pink."

Enjoy!

**Chapter 4: To Gain a Willing Teacher is to Lose a Match Beforehand**

"Father, do you know where Akane has gone?" the sweet voice of Kasumi drifted through the thin paper walls and into Akane's ears.

"Ah, th-that's right! She told me she was going to be, uh, spending dinner at a friend's house because they needed homework help! Hehe…heh…" Soun's obvious nervousness made Akane want to slap himself in the forehead, but he was afraid the noise would alert the others to his presence. He was waiting for the perfect moment to appear as "Aoi," though he soon realized he didn't know when that would be.

"Eh, I guess that means more food for me!" came Ranma's eager voice.

"Not so fast, boy! We're going to have a guest for dinner, so leave Akane's plate alone."

As soon as Akane heard Happosai say that, he breathed a sigh of relief and felt it was as good a time as any to walk into the room.

"Well look who it is!" Nabiki exclaimed in an unsurprised voice. "It's Momoi! Or something similar."

Everyone in the room, excluding the panda who was inhaling rice and bamboo shoots, turned to look at the new boy.

Akane nervously raised a hand in a greeting and said, "Actually, it's Aoi. I'm, uh, Master Happosai's great-grandson and also a disciple of Anything Goes Martial Arts." He then gave a quick bow, almost putting his hands in front like a female but then correcting himself and leaving his hands at his side the way a male should.

"Eh?!" shouted the other occupants of the room, expect for Soun and Happosai. Even Genma had to pause in his meal and gape at the boy.

"Since when did Happosai have any children, let alone grandchildren?"

"I thought the only students in this school were me an' Akane?"

"My, isn't it lovely Grandfather Happosai has found a relative?"

[Master! What is the meaning of this?]

Happosai lifted a hand to silence everyone, and surprisingly it calmed them all down. Bringing his pipe to his lips, he said, "Sit down, m'boy, and I'll explain what I know to the rest of you."

Akane, now officially Aoi, did as he asked. He set himself down in the spot he would normally seat himself in as a girl and gratefully accepted the bowl of rice Kasumi handed to him. He gave his thanks, being mindful not to address Kasumi as his older sister. Akane wanted to think it was a good sign that no one had found out his secret yet, but remembered such thoughts would probably bring misfortune. To distract himself, he quickly stuffed his mouth with the delicious dinner and focused his attention on Happosai.

"I met with the boy a few weeks ago on one of my longer training trips—"

"Panty raids," Ranma coughed.

"—in the city of Okinawa. I was in the midst of aiding a young woman catch some laundry that had been blown away by the harsh winds of winter—"

"Bullshit," Nabiki said flat out.

"—when someone suddenly reached out and snatched the precious clothing away! The misunderstanding was later cleared up. Aoi here was merely assisting me in collecting the nice woman's laundry—"

This time Happosai was interrupted not by words, but by Akane's fist on his head.

"Like I would do something perverted like that! I'm not like you, creepy old man!"

Tears, probably fake, leaked out of Happosai's exaggeratedly wide eyes. "As you can probably tell, this boy has no respect for his elders, much less his great-grandfather!"

Genma shook his head and brought up a sign saying:

[I know the feeling. My own son is exactly the same!]

Ranma scoffed and replied, "In my opinion, Aoi is doing just fine."

Happosai ignored this insolence and continued, "Anyway, the lad told me he was looking for a person by my name, saying he was an orphan with nowhere else to go. I'm the only family he has left."

"Oh, dear," sighed Kasumi. "It must be hard for you to live all by yourself. How long has it been?"

Akane didn't know how to answer that, and since Happosai was doing such a splendid job so far with his lies (though the "training trip" part might be true) he was content to let him deal with it.

"Aoi's mother, my granddaughter, passed on when he was at a very young age. His father later disappeared without a trace when he was merely ten years old. Ever since then he's been traveling the whole of Japan, searching for me because he found family scrolls that became his only lead. It's a shame I was still trapped in a cave at the time or else I could have met and cared for the boy much sooner." Happosai shook his head in sorrow.

Caught up in the act, Soun began to weep and cried, "Master! Please forgive us! We were young and naïve when we thought no one would care if you suddenly died!"

Happosai merely nodded his head in approval as he continued with the story, "But now family has finally been reunited! In order to pay Aoi for the neglect he had to put up with for sixteen years, I have decided to train him and determine whether or not _he_ will become the heir to the School."

Sounds of choking filled the room and Kasumi reached over to pat Akane on the back as he proverbially hacked up a lung, while Ranma and the panda were left to fend for themselves.

The first to recover was Genma as he whipped out a sign: [Master! Could you possibly be saying that _Ranma_ won't be inheriting the school?!]

Nabiki saw this as her chance to have a little fun with everyone's minds, and waited for the teenagers to cease their coughing fits before asking, "And since the inheritor of the school gets the dojo through marriage, does that mean Aoi will be marrying Akane instead of Ranma?"

"What?!"

There was a sound of splintering wood as everyone abruptly shut their mouths. At the end of the cracks on the table were Ranma's fists. Looking up a bit, they all saw the look of disbelief and outrage on his face.

This couldn't actually be happening. Happosai just showed up one day with some _grandson_ claiming to remove the title of heir to the School of Anything Goes Martial Arts from Ranma. Not only that, but that same grandson was going to _marry_ Akane? Ranma would have none of it. Time to solve this problem the way he did any others. With fists.

Jumping to his feet, Ranma pointed at the dumbstruck teenage boy and declared, "I can prove to everyone right now that I'm the rightful heir to the school and that I'll be the one marr—making sure no one is forcing any more engagements! We've already got too many problems ta deal with!"

For a second Akane forgot the role she was playing. Had she heard correctly? Did Ranma almost slip up and admit he wanted to marry her, er, him at the moment (as awkward as it seemed)? That was it. There had been far too many close calls on it, and Akane was reaching his breaking point. Tears of frustration began to well up in his eyes at Ranma's indecisiveness when suddenly he was hit in the back of the head.

Falling forward onto his face, Akane heard Happosai reply for him. "The boy accepts. Once he gets up we can all head over to the dojo for a formal match."

Slowly, Akane rose from his sprawl on the floor and by the time he lifted his face up in anger towards Happosai, the rest of the family had already filed out of the room and were proceeding to the dojo after Ranma.

He took the opportunity to yell out his complaints. "What was that for?! I know you knew that was an emotional moment for me just now! Why else would you hit me?!"

Happosai haughtily responded, "I don't need a reason to discipline my student. Besides, men don't get emotional, especially men who are martial artists. Now get your butt over to the dojo before I humiliatingly send it through the door myself!"

"For the last time, I'm not your student," Akane muttered heatedly before stomping towards the dojo.

By the time he passed through the doors and stood a few meters from Ranma, Happosai had already taken a seat next to Soun, smoking his pipe and not bothering to look his way. Akane almost huffed in annoyance, and then remembered he didn't really care about the old man's opinions. He resolved to keep his focus on Ranma and the fight, proving that he could handle himself just fine without needing any extra training from some perverted old man.

Turning to look straight ahead, Akane bowed to Ranma as he did the same to acknowledge each other before the fight. As they both straightened back up, Akane couldn't help but notice that he was now about the same height as Ranma, if not an inch or two taller. Unfortunately this distraction caused Akane to miss the signal that the fight had already began, therefore not being able to completely avoid Ranma's fist as it came in fast.

As Akane clumsily swerved to the right, he realized several things, none of them particularly good. For one thing, he had been cursed not even an hour ago and that gave him no time to properly adjust to the new body. Secondly, his forms in martial arts would automatically be all wrong since he didn't know how to compensate for the sudden added height, weight, and overall mass. Lastly, and most frighteningly, Akane had never been on the receiving end of Ranma's attacks. They had never truly sparred before and he never once raised a hand against her, no matter how rottenly she treated him.

_Oh, no. What was I thinking? I can't beat someone like Ranma!_

For the first time ever, Akane Tendo felt true fear. As he frantically did his best to duck under or leap over punches and kicks from Ranma, he already knew whose match it was. Even if he could avoid getting severely injured, Akane would eventually tire, especially since the hits that landed (which were probably all of them) could be felt all over his body. It only got worse when the insults began.

"Geez, you're not much of a challenge, are ya?"

Akane grit his teeth and tried to hold back miniscule tears of frustration. _I know I could never be a challenge to you! Just shut up about it!_

"I know a buncha girls that could take you on without even having to use their dumb potions to paralyze you."

_So what if all of your "fiancées" are better than I could ever hope to be?_

"Eh? What's the matter? Wish your mommy was here so you could cry to her?"

There was an audible gasp by the other Tendos. It was a low blow, considering Ranma knew that "Aoi's" mother was dead. Whether he knew or not that it was Akane he was actually talking to, it shouldn't have mattered. However he didn't care. All that occupied his mind was how this new guy had the slightest chance of ending up married to _his_ fiancée and he would have to go along with it should it happen. He didn't understand why, but it hurt too much to ignore when Ranma thought of that. So he planned on making Aoi hurt just as much.

Akane couldn't believe it. How _dare_ he play on his feelings concerning his mother? Of course he wished she were here! Maybe if she were still alive, Akane could have grown up knowing how to be more feminine, to be able to cook, to know how to deal with the rest of his family and the feelings he felt when at peace with a certain boy he was currently fighting.

In a new outburst of anger, Akane lost all control and threw himself at Ranma, planning on strangling him until he passed out.

_It wasn't my fault that Mom died!_

Suddenly all the rage and frustration flew out of Akane as if it had never been. That thought came out of nowhere and left him feeling confused as he still flew towards Ranma. Needless to say, Akane was utterly open to any attack, especially from Ranma's right fist as it was aimed for his face. He didn't even see it coming.

Nabiki had a plan. Aoi was currently taking a bath to clean up after the painfully one-sided match before he would leave for his own home. This gave her the opportunity to label him as a pervert and further alienating him from Ranma. Sure, it was clear to Nabiki that the boy probably didn't have one perverted atom in his body, but it could be overlooked.

Standing in the changing room outside the bath, Nabiki stripped off her clothes save for her strapless bra and panties. She wrapped a towel around herself to make it look like she was actually naked. Preparing to slide the door open, she realized this would be almost the exact same way Akane first met Ranma in his male form. However, the difference here would be that Nabiki wouldn't chase him around the house with large heavy objects and she _definitely_ wasn't going to become his fiancée.

No, all she planned to do was act as an innocent victim in a misunderstanding that no one would realize. Closing her eyes, Nabiki confidently slid the door aside and started rubbing her eyes with her available hand.

"Ouch, something must have gotten in my eye. Oh, well. I think a nice…warm…steamy bath could…help…my little predicament." Nabiki uttered all of this in a subtle seductive voice, meant to freeze Aoi in his movements and allow her to approach him without letting him get away.

"Oh hey, sis. You okay? Kasumi told me you took your bath already."

Snapping her eyes open and dropping her towel in surprise, Nabiki saw Akane lounging in the bath. Flustered at having been caught acting so weirdly, Nabiki could only ask one thing.

"What happened to Aoi?"

"The boy who says he's Happosai's grandson? I met him when he left the changing room because I was planning on taking a bath. Maybe he already left the house?"

Nabiki narrowed her eyes. Could it be possible that he was able to move fast enough that she didn't see him?

"Sounds logical. By the way, what happened to your hair?"

Akane's hands flew to her hair and a sad look briefly crossed her face before she answered nervously, "My hair? Some kids ran into me while I was walking to Sayuri's house and one of them accidentally spit gum into my hair. By the time I got the house, Sayuri said it was hopeless to get the stuff out." In a quieter voice she added, "Does it make me look like even more of a tomboy now?"

Seeing the devastated look, Nabiki replied, "Don't mention anything of what happened hear today, and I won't ask for the real story." And with that, she took the remains of her dignity and left.

Akane sighed in relief and continued fingering her hair as she muttered, "Will do, sis. Will do."

**Author's Note**: I don't really like how this chapter turned out. Maybe it was because of the two and a half months it took to write it out…


End file.
